Anakin Skywalker's Hope
by John Silver fan
Summary: Anakin Skywalker finds hope in a stowaway aboard the Executor.


Admiral Firmus Piett was not a man who panicked easily, but right now he was panicking, at least on the inside. On the outside he was the calm, collected man the others aboard the _Executor_ knew him to be.

He could faintly hear the sound of Lord Vader's respirator behind him, coming closer. The talking of the bridge crew stopped, and his heart began pounding, his panic threatening to come out.

"Admiral Piett," came the rumbing baritone of the Sith.

He slowly turned.

"Yes, Milord?"

The Dark Lord held up a little girl about five years old with dark brown hair and sapphire blue eyes, and Piett felt like his stomach dropped.

"Missing something?"

He swallowed, well aware of all eyes upon them.

"Daddy."

With trembling hands, he reached for his daughter, Cas Taylor Piett. To his relief, Vader let him take her.

"What is she doing here, Admiral?"

"I snuck on," the girl said.

The Admiral paled.

"Why made you doing something so foolish?"

Cas, though only five, knew when she was being insulted and glared at Vader.

"I wanted to see Daddy work."

"The Executor is no place for a child like you," the black cyborg rumbled.

Piett thought for sure that his heart was beating so madly that Vader would hear it.

"You're a big meanie!"

The bridge crew gaped in shock and a bit of horror.

"Cas! Lord Vader, I apologize. She's just a child, she doesn't really know any better."

To his and the crew's amazement, Vader chuckled.

"You're bold, young one."

The Sith's fearsome mask turned back to Piett.

"She may remain until we return to Coruscant."

"Thank you, Lord Vader."

The Dark Lord nodded and stalked away.

As the days passed, Cas usually stuck close to her father, but she was extremely curious about Vader. She spotted him walking by and ran to him.

It took Piett only a moment to realize his child was missing, and his heart skipped a beat when he saw her run in front of Vader, causing him to stop and look down at her.

"Where are you goin'?"

"The hangar bay."

The Admiral hurried towards them.

"Can I come?"

Her father reached them.

"Cas, you need to stay near me. I'm sorry, Lord Vader."

"No need, Admiral. She is welcome to come with me to the hangar bay."

Piett and everyone who had heard stared at their commanding officer in shock. Vader paid them no mind and continued on his way with Cas at his side, taking three steps for every one of his.

It soon became a common sight over the days. Cas was either with her father or Vader. As often as they saw it, the men still found it strange seeing a child with the Sith.

Vader didn't mind her following him, in fact, when she would follow him, he'd often stop and wait for her catch up to him. He by no means played with her as Piett and even some of the other men did when there was time, but he allowed her to follow him and, usually, answered when she asked him a question.

The Dark Lord seemed much calmer with Cas around as well, and he killed less often as well. Whenever he _did_ kill someone, he made sure she wasn't around. Unlike most, Cas wasn't afraid of him. She was curious about him. He remembered when she had asked him why he worse his mask.

**_"Vader?"_**

**_"Yes?"_**

**_The girl waited until he looked down at her to continue._**

**_"Why do you wear that mask?"_**

**_He hesitated, unsure of if and/or how he should answer that._**

**_"I need it. It helps me breathe. I'd die without it," he said finally, deciding he couldn't like to the girl._**

**_"Why do you need it?"_**

**_He paused again._**

**_"I was hurt a long time ago."_**

**_"Oh. That's so sad," she said genuinely._**

She was the first person to truly feel sympathy for him in a long time.

One day, he took her with him into his quarters and into his mediation chamber.

"This is a special chamber made for me to be able to have my mask off for a while," he told her as he sat in the chair.

"Wow."

He smiled slightly under his mask.

"What I'm going to show you cannot be told to anyone else, not even Admiral Piett."

She nodded.

"I promise I won't tell."

He slowly removed his mask.

Cas stared at him but not in fear or disgust as he had expected. She was sad.

He felt her climb onto his lap, standing on his leg, one hand on his chest for balance, and then she touched his face. Her hand was so small and gentle it almost brought tears to his eyes, almost.

"What happened?" she asked softly as her hand very lightly touched his scars.

"I was burned."

She looked at him, a little surprised.

It took him a moment to realize what surprised her. It had been his voice. Without his mask on, his voice was his own, and she was used to the deep, powerful voice of Vader.

"The man under the mask."

Now he was the one surprised. She was wise _far_ beyond her five years of age.

She smiled at him, and he slowly smiled back.

"There's you, and there's Vader. Who are you?"

He hesitated for a moment.

"Anakin," he said at length.

"Anakin. That's a nice name."

He smiled again.

"I'll call you... Ani."

He blinked in surprise.

"My mother called me."

"Really?"

He nodded.

"Cool!"

He chuckled softly then grew serious again.

"You can't tell anyone what you've seen or learned."

"I already promised I wouldn't."

His smile returned.

"All right. Now go find your father."

He opened the the chamber enough for her to get out.

"Bye, Ani."

"Goodbye, for now."

She then caught him off guard by kissing his cheek before scampering out of the chamber to go find her father.

He closed the chamber and sat deep in thought. She opened him up and saw the real him. He wondered if she had always suspected there was someone else under the image of Vader. She hadn't ever really treated him like Vader, despite calling him that, though she had only known him to be called that. She had treated him just as regular person.

She was the answer he had been searching for, the answer to redemption. She had, probably unknowingly, seen him, Anakin Skywalker, under the armor and mask of Vader.

She was Anakin Skywalker's hope.


End file.
